"And there's Carmel Beach." I looked over, grinning at the sight of people in the water. Surfers could be seen, along with speedboats and sailboats.
"Can we go swimming? I usually swim the Dover Strait, but I've never swam here!" I said, grinning excitedly. Hadara nodded, smiling as well.
"I'll take you somewhere to go swimming before you have to leave." She replied, watching as I made a fake pout. "Come on, we're almost at the station." Hadara continued walking, chuckling to herself. She was an interesting country; more bright and vibrant than I imagined. Shorter too, with brown hair that hit mid-back and Arab toned skin. A bandage covered most of her left cheek…that was probably the thingy I noticed last night.
"Jacob, come on!" I stuck my tongue out at her, running to catch up.
"Calm down pipsqueak, I'm coming." I said, reaching over and flicking her forehead. She rubbed the spot, huffing in annoyance.
"I am not a pipsqueak! And I can't help it if you're a beanpole!" She retorted, punching me in the arm. I winced slightly; she hit hard for such a small girl.
"Better a beanpole than a midget!" I shot back.
"Shrimp!" "Gargantua!" "Midget!" "Giant!" "Shortie!" "Goli-" Her insult cut off. I looked down at her, waiting for her reply.
"Goli what?" She shrugged, not looking at me.
"Giraffe!" I rolled my eyes, following her up to the station.
"What were you really about to say?" I asked, pushing open the door for her. She gave me an odd look, but walked in.
"Not telling." She murmured, grinning. "And stay by me, you are a tourist after all."
"Hey, I'm the best kind of tourist! Just watch!" I walked past her up to the ticket booth, nodding to the person there.
"Hello my good man. Bookair Tuv!" The man blinked in surprise, before grinning.
"Sorry mate. Afraid we don't speak that language here." He replied, in a horrible attempt at my accent. Though I guess I am one to talk...I walked right into it. Hadara was muffling her laughter as she walked to my side, giving the man a card. The two started conversing, before she turned and pushed me towards the gates.
"Here's your ticket." She murmured, passing one to me. "And it's 'Boker Tov.' "
I went through, followed by the other country. "What's that mean anyway? I asked.
"It means good morning. Any other words you'd like to know, mate?" She gave me a triumphant look.
"How do I say you're annoying?" I started to ask, but my question was cut off as the train pulled in. Looking around, I was taken aback by the soldiers I saw around. They were everywhere as far as I could tell! Hadara noticed my confused look and nudged me, getting my attention back. We climbed on, the other quickly securing seats. There were even more soldiers on board, with a good number of them armed with assault rifles.
"Hadara, what's with all the soldiers? Are you fighting some unknown war?" She shrugged, resting her chin on her palm.
"I prefer to say, we're always prepared." She mumbled finally, staring up at me. I stared back, my gaze locked with hers.
"Can I ask a question?" We said simultaneously, before breaking into identical grins.
"You first." I looked at her expectantly, watching her clear her throat.
"That bandage on your nose, what's it from?" Hadara asked curiously, reaching forward and squeezing my nose. I smacked her hand away, rolling my eyes at her laughter.
"If you must know, it's from Gallipoli." I muttered, rubbing my nose.
"Oh…is there a scar?" She murmured, looking at me with slightly pitying eyes.
"Yup, wanna see?" Before she could answer, I pulled the bandage up, revealing the large scar crossing my nose. She leaned closer, staring at it closely before sitting down again.
"Not too shabby indeed." She replied, grinning.
"Now, I want to know about that bandage on your cheek." I poked her cheek, grinning as she jerked backwards.
"This is the result of my constant feud." She murmured, pulling it off. Four lines adorned her cheek, jagged in appearance. I whistled low, looking over it.
"Now that's a beauty." I said, leaning back.
"Nope. Nothing beautiful about it." Hadara muttered under her breath. A loud ding sounded, followed by a voice coming over the intercom.
"That's our cue. Come on giraffe." She stood up, walking towards the doors. I followed her quickly, not wanting to get separated. The train slowly ground to a halt; and people started getting out. I got caught in the crowd; being pushed and pulled in several directions. "Jacob, where are you?" I could her Hadara call, but couldn't see her at all.
"Scuse me! Need to get out!" I tried, but only succeeded in being pushed back. The ding sounded again, and I could only watch helplessly as the doors closed. I could only stare out the window as the train pulled away from the station, Hadara staring after me with a horrified expression.
"Um…err…" I turned to the nearest person, tapping on their shoulder. "Excuse me, where's this train headed now?"
"Herzliyya." The person replied, smiling. "And then, Tel Aviv-Yafo."
"But I need to get to Netanya!" I protested, staring out the window as the train left the station.
"That was Netanya. You have to get off at the next stop, and go the opposite way." The person waved, before walking off. I nodded slowly, trying to get my bearings now.
"Okay, I'll just call her…if I had her number." I moved around the train, sitting down stiffly. "This is not good, not good at all…" I was stuck on a train headed somewhere I didn't know about, and I didn't know how to get to Netanya. I really only had one idea at this point. Pulling out my phone, I flipped through my contacts. Stopping at a number, I pressed call. The phone rang once, twice, three times before someone picked up.
"Jacob?" The person muttered sleepily, his English accent thick with sleep.
"Yeah, hey Artie." I murmured, rubbing my head sheepishly. "Look, I need your help. How do you get to Netanya from…Hertziya? I think…"